Fm13 Possession tactic discussion thread by Raikan007

andrewstevens said:
Hi all, I have a Sunderland game loaded on fm13 playing a possession tactic but seem to be conceding far to many goals per game but possession wise I'm getting good results just defensively very poor any suggestions would kindly appreciate??? Cheers
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We would have to know more about your tactic before we can actually recognize the problem, but dropping your D-line lower might help.
 
im playing the basic possesion tactics and getting like 60% odd possession but keep conceding to many goals i keep tweaking but keep conceding 2-3 or more goals a game
 
andrewstevens said:
im playing the basic possesion tactics and getting like 60% odd possession but keep conceding to many goals i keep tweaking but keep conceding 2-3 or more goals a game
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The screenshots m8


And regarding Stewie, you need to sacrifice some of your possession to create the chances. More freedom to players with through balls set to often, less time wasting etc.
 
ive tryed formation like 4-2-3-1 with 2 defensive midfielders then i tryed pushing the two defensive mids into centre mid with a bwm and a dlp role either dont work its just the back 4 and maybe need to alter the individual instructions any ideas
 
andrewstevens said:
sorry no screenshots ive deleted game as got sacked lol
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Well lol dont delete the game just cos U get sacked.

And just changing midfielders from Dm to Cm wont solve anything m8, we need to see where the problem lies with the screenshots and then see whether changing player positions are required.
 
how do i see number of passes?

hi, raikan. brilliant thread! using your tips i've created a 4411 formation for my afc Wimbledon side and i boss possession in every championship match I play - 60%+, whilst creating a decent amount of CCCs. I have a quick question for you though.. sorry if im being stupid and it's obvious, but how do I work out the number of passes per game from the analysis / performance screen without adding them all up individually myself? I've tried to customise the match stats screen aswell but it only seems to give me percentages.. cheers
 
Raikan007 said:
Welcome to Fm-base and Fm13 discussion and help thread regarding possession!



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As many of you are intrigued by possession based tactics I thought I would start this thread so that we could discuss possession tactics and how to go about creating them for yourself without having to download anyone else's
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Some people make specific Barca tactics for Barca only but possession is not all about replicating Barca or making a tactic that resembles their formation etc, its about retaining possession and creating scoring chances:

The four part system consists of the following components which are being integrated at the moment:


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  1. [*=center]Possession (not adament on getting 1 player over 100 passes, the more passers of the ball the better)
    [*=center]Creating CCC's (clear cut chances) while remaining in possession of the ball
    [*=center]Operating defensively while incorporating points 1&2
    [*=center]Playing in the opponents half
In this thread we will look at player roles, formations, team instructions, opposition formations, home or away, pitch dimensions, touchline shouts and many many more factors that influence possession tactics
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Please note, this is not a thread for anyone to post and show off their possession stats, feel free to post them please but this is not to promote your tactic or show off it is a discussion thread and if you would like feedback from myself or anyone else, feel free to post anything you would like advice or assistance on
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this is also not a competition to see who has the most passes as passes are extremely easy to get, its what you do with possession that counts
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Things to keep in mind when creating possession tactics:



you dont always have to play extremely narrow and slow, the wider and quicker you play, depending on formation and the players you have will increase passes and possession
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  • [*=center]you dont have to have a primary playmaker or target man selected with ball to feet, possession is about team possession, not single players passes
    [*=center]full backs are always going to be involved no matter what you do! the best is to take advantage of them and use them correctly, I have them set to hold up ball, this helps in retaining possession and not giving it away cheaply

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  • [*=center]PPM's play a major role in players performing certain tasks during the game, if a player has run with ball often, shoots from distance, switches ball to other flanks, these go against possession tactics and should be avoided, PPM's like: plays one two's, dictates tempo, comes deep, looks for pass rather than shot, simple passes, tries killer balls, moves into channels are all very good to have for your players

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  • [*=center]getting passess are easy, you will have to start by getting the possession and that will start from the back like normal, your cb's, keeper and fb's will have the most passes etc, dont worry about that, tweak the formation and instructions as you go to get the ball further up the field, you want to have possession but in their half, not your own as you will not create any chances, the SS below is how it is going to start, as I said, getting the ball higher up in the opponents half is one of the main objectives:


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  • [*=center]getting your main players involved like Messi for eg: alot of possession *Barca* tactics I have seen barely have Messi involved at all, 12 passes max a game, try and get each player to have similar amounts of passes, not just one and neglecting the others
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    the more passers of the ball the better
    [*=center]dont feel as though you need to get the striker/s involved with the build up play, in order to score goals they need to be the focal point of your attack and should be made to hold up the ball or involved to heavily in build up play
    [*=center]pass and move is the foundation of possession, so this means, playing through balls sometimes and run from deep should be used for your mids/attackers! instead of running with the ball they need to create space by running off it into spaces and channels. This needs to be played around with to find the correct balance for your players and your team
    [*=center]you dont have to focus passing through the middle either, using the whole pitch creates more space and passing options!
    [*=center]when it comes to the passing slider, imagine a circle around the player, 1 click being for eg: 1m passes, the further the slider goes the further and more direct the passes will become!
    [*=center]all players involved in the triangles or passing sphere should have move into channels and even roam from position on to create open spaces to receive the pass, do not use this for central defenders, fullbacks can also be given this option, but be aware of the consequences on defence!
    [*=center]goalkeeper distribution should be defender collect and your best passing defender as the receiver
    [*=center]of course no long shots should be given and run with ball should also be used lightly/sparingly
    [*=center]full backs should be set to support or attack, imagine support being in line with the Dm position and attack being in line with the Cm position, this will be the position of your fullbacks. (get what I am saying)
    [*=center]In order to create more chances, you have to be prepared to sacrifice some possession in order to get the ball in the box for someone to bury it, this is important to understand and accept, it is easy racking up passes but the hard part is converting the possession into goals!
    [*=center]Possession tactics take a while longer to gel with your team, allow for at least 20 games for your team to become accustomed to the tactic

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  • [*=center]The more passes the player does and the more successful they are increase his average rating! I have tested it countless times, players with over 80 passes and a pass percentage of 87% plus will always be over 7 regardless!
    [*=center]Playing a very high defensive line is important, you want to peg the opponents in their own half as that is where you should be wanting to play the ball! at least 3/4 of the way up is a good start!
    [*=center]Some possession tactics use a deep line.. it all just depends on your players and the instructions you give them! try different things out and see the results..
    [*=center]With a high defensive line you dont have to play the offside trap, as most of the time your cb's will be sitting on the halfway line, neither do you have to play counter attack as it is not that effective playing with a high line! the deeper you are the better it is playing on the counter and quickly/directly as well!

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  • [*=center]Possession is not all about making "triangles" either, having players move into spaces will create these triangles, not actually trying to create them with the formation (even though I do with the Amc)
    [*=center]creative freedom is a very important part of creating a good possession tactic! having the player set to defensive with a high creative freedom and setting all player instructions to NEVER results in high amount of passes! but this should be tested and implemented sparingly... should be used sparingly as for one, it will counter the personal and team instructions you have given! this however should not be set to 0 as it also has a part to play with free role's as it allows the player to move around more freely as well! so use it wisely for the players that will be the main area of your passing!
    [*=center]Time wasting is also important, I use it sometimes, the more you use of it the more your players will hold onto the ball, this will actually prevent passes being made and instead of going forward they players will most of the time play it backwards which is not what you want! so keep that in mind! As well as it being counter productive, it also can be detrimental as players can be caught in possession easily and the opposition can create easy chances!
    [*=center]Holding up the ball should also be used sparingly, have no more than 3 players holding up the ball, this is due to the fact that instead of playing the quick ball that could create a chance, they hang onto it which allows the opposition to get back into position!
    [*=center]there is a lot more to say, hit a bit of a blank now, going to update is as I remember etc
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913 passes, 88% possession, 2 CCC's! the best result I have had to date
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Suggested team instructions:
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*this is for the classic tactics, this is what I currently use for my teams



206028d1322482834-short-sweet%99-zenit-v-cska-moscow-cska-moscow_-team-instructions-.png


Modern Tactic's Suggested team instructions:

Philosophy: Balanced or Fluid (it does not have to be very fluid, thats a farce)
Strategy: Control or attacking, attacking works better for me!

(going to update the SS with the modern tactic's suggestions)

playing Zonal marking and pressing will ensure the team will keep its shape, I ensure that tight marking is also selected in player instructions!

For closing down (the thing most people have issues with) I have a simple solution that works really well for me, have every player (save for your out and out goalscorer) to close down exactly the same, I have it set to own half but right on the border of whole pitch, this will ensure your team really keep their shape and close down together as a unit and dont get dragged out of position... or you can set the whole team to close down the entire pitch as well!

Having your striker/s set to tight man marking and setting opposition instructions to close down the defenders is also a good part of a possession tactic, this forces the cb's to hoof the ball clear when your strikers are closing them down, and could even make mistakes if their composure stat is rather low!

Suggested touchline shouts:
*I do not use most of these except hassle, work ball into box when playing modern tactics, the possession tactic I use is made in classic mode and does not use shouts


Retain possession
Work ball into box
Pass to feet
Play out of defence
Play through defence
Hassle opponents
Look for overlap (also good)


Recommended formations:
*I personally use a 433 with two central cm's who drop deep to get the ball and the playmaker Amc with two wingers and a striker

This is my formation and instructions I use on my latest possession tactic!

View attachment 279685

4-3-3 (Amc or Dm)
4-1-2-1-2
4-2-1-2-1
3-3-3-1
3-2-3-1-1

(there are so many different formations out there.. its up to you what works best!

Pitch dimensions:

Well this is up to you, I find that using normal or standard works the best, as mentioned, its not all about playing narrow and on the smallest pitch, please note this plays a large role in possession tactics and should be not be taken lightly.

Opposition Instructions:
*you can leave this to assistant manager but make sure you do the following:

Show all strikers, central mids (cm's and am'cs) on to weaker foot and close down
or

1) show strikers to weaker feet
2) tight mark wide players and show to weaker foot, hard tackling
3) close down central mids and show to weaker feet
4) close down cb's and show to weaker feet

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please feel free to ask anything regarding possession tactics here, please feel free to use anything from any of my tactics for your own and I look forward to seeing your progress in creating a great possession tactic
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thanks, Neil
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hi, great article mate, could you explain this to me in more details please:

creative freedom is a very important part of creating a good possession tactic! having the player set to defensive with a high creative freedom and setting all player instructions to NEVER results in high amount of passes! but this should be tested and implemented sparingly... should be used sparingly as for one, it will counter the personal and team instructions you have given! this however should not be set to 0 as it also has a part to play with free role's as it allows the player to move around more freely as well! so use it wisely for the players that will be the main area of your passing!
 
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i wonder If Raikan or anyone thinks that the ME is up to the task of replicating an effective tika-taka tactic yet? Will they accomplish this soon?
 
Hi Raikan, i am playing attacking and fluid, but not sure how much creative freedom i shuld give to my players as i want to play possession football. Thanks
 
Jack Ahmed said:
Hi Raikan, i am playing attacking and fluid, but not sure how much creative freedom i shuld give to my players as i want to play possession football. Thanks
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I didn't actually found an answer to that question but when i tried the options it seems that a very fluid philosophy with a lot of creative freedom gets more possession than a strict one..even with teams that don't have creative players.
 
Hi Raikan, i'm currently working on Barcelona's style possession football. I found difficult to score coz I asked players to cross the ball so rarely. Its very easy to score from 'cross' based on this 'ME' but i will need to give up possession.

I need your professional advice. Thanks
 
Hey guys, hope this helps some people in some way. Might be stating the obvious to most of you, but felt like it was worth posting.

I've been working on perfecting a possession tactic for a while now, and while I'm still not 100% happy I noticed certain attributes are more important than others for players to have. What surprised me is that technical attributes are actually the least important.

As well as the stats vital for their roles (i.e. tackling for defenders, finishing for strikers), there are some stats you will want most or all of your players to be high in. Here are the stats that players in every position should be at least 14/15 to get the most out of a possession tactic. The 5 I think are absolutely vital are highlighted in red:

Technical Attributes

First Touch - because in a possession tactic your players will (hopefully) be touching the ball a lot, so you want your players to be able to control the ball easily.

Passing - pretty obvious, you will want your players to be good passers of the ball.

Technique - combines with a players passing ability to make them good passers, also vital for strikers to be clinical finishers.

Mental Attributes

Anticipation - because in a tactic where you are constantly moving the ball around with players making runs off the ball, it's essential that your players are always anticipating what's going to happen next. This is one of the most important attributes for players to have in a possession tactic.

Composure - because possession tactics tend to be slow tempo, narrow tactics it means that the opposition will close down & press for the ball. High composure means your players will keep their cool passing game more often and are less likely to just boot the ball into space.

Concentration - most people talk about this as a defenders attribute, but in a possession tactic it's important for all your players because everyone is (hopefully) involved in every phase of the game and a mistake up front late in the game could lead to that killer counter attack.

Decisions - because in a tactic where you are making so many passes and runs off the ball, it's important each decision is the right decision (i.e. whether to pass to feet or a through ball, make another pass or shoot from the edge of the area, etc.)

Off The Ball - important for all players except central defenders because you want your players to constantly finding space and moving into it.

Teamwork - high teamwork means less chance of someone trying to go it alone and dribble from the edge of his own area or take a ridiculous long shot.

Physical Attributes

Acceleration - important for defensive players to be able to keep up with pacey opposition attackers, also for midfielders & attackers to get the 'extra step' on their markers when finding space.

Pace - not as important as acceleration, but usually is similar anyway.

Agility - from my experience so far, agility is one of the most important attributes (definitely the most important physical attribute) for possession tactics. Important for defenders to make the quick turns to start chasing those through balls, and for midfielders & attackers receiving the ball to feet to make that quick turn into space. Vital.

Balance - combines with agility to hold off the marker when making those turns.

Stamina - obvious really, you don't want your players running out of gas.
 
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